The Hart Act, recently adopted by the state of California, mandates that school districts establish mechanisms of assessing minimal competencies in secondary education before students may receive a diploma. In this report, assemblyman Gary Hart, the bill's author, and Don McKinley, chief deputy to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, discuss…

Online learning holds promise for providing new educational opportunities to a wide range of students across the country. The rapid expansion of K-12 online learning, however, threatens to outpace the development of appropriate state-level policies that serve to fulfill the promise. As the National Association of State Boards of Education warned…

Sets the context for examining a series of articles that highlight California's work on beginning teacher induction, discussing restructuring to connect teaching and learning, knowledge of student learning, teacher performance expectations, standards of practice, the role of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, implications for…

The passage of the 1997 Amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as well as the increased numbers of students with disabilities being educated part or full time in general education classes, create significant challenges for teacher preparation programs for both special and general education teachers. In response to…

Abundant research chronicles the backgrounds and characteristics of community college students assigned to developmental reading. Many are members of underrepresented groups and first in their families to attend college. English may not be their primary language. Developmental students often struggle with learning disabilities. Nontraditional…

Results of a national survey of state certification standards for cross-training of regular and special education teachers (n=51, including the District of Columbia) are analyzed relative to implementation of the Regular Education Initiative, a proposal that stresses increased responsibility by regular teachers in the education of handicapped…

This study compares the criteria utilized by private and public school officials in the selection of beginning teachers. A similar study undertaken in Oregon (Webb 1980) was extended by incorporating private schools. Of the 117 California school districts sent questionnaires, 88 responded--a return rate of 75 percent. Twenty-nine of the private…

As an adjunct to the California State Board of Education's 1983 report, "Raising Expectations: Model Graduation Requirements," this paper presents legislative and administrative recommendations on teacher quality and on the principal's role. The State Board's Master Plan Committee, which also produced "Raising Expectations,"…

Senate Bill (SB) 1422 required the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing to review the requirements for earning and renewing teaching credentials. This report presents the results of the review. Part 1, "Overview of the Comprehensive Review of Teaching Credential Requirements," examines the purpose and structure of the review…

The charter-schools movement provides the opportunity to observe whether granting schools freedom from most state regulations actually produces more freedom for school administrators and teachers, and whether this autonomy produces other distinctive outcomes. This report summarizes findings of Southwest Regional Laboratory's (SWRL's) statewide…

This paper discusses a study that examined the characteristics of part-time faculty in order to gain a better understanding of their needs so that better decisions might be made in part-time faculty management. Implications for institutional researchers who plan to study part-time faculty were also examined, including the challenges of obtaining…

Overviews the problems California schools have recruiting bilingual teachers and presents a recruiting model originating in the San Bernardino County Fontana School District in cooperation with a major university. Components of the model include well-defined staffing policies, a career ladder for bilingual teacher aides and support for teacher…

Maintains that California schools have undergone an enormous transformation over the past two decades, with over a million students identified as limited English proficient. Describes changes in teacher education and certification designed to meet the needs of limited English proficient students. (CFR)

Due to a projected enrollment of more than one million limited-English-proficient (LEP) students in California's public schools by the year 2000, the Task Force on Selected LEP Issues established in 1989 examined the lack of foresight and problems related to the low representation of minorities in higher education and especially in teacher…

In order to determine the effectiveness of vocational education programs in the California secondary schools and regional occupational centers and programs (ROC/P), a survey was taken of a random selection of 1,164 high school programs and 500 programs of ROC/P. Data were gathered through program self-assessment questionnaires and analyzed into…